As a budding historian, it is significant to learn the history… of history. Historiography has taught me to look beyond words on a page. Equally as significant as a historian’s work is information about the historian him (or her) self. Do they have bias? Were they commissioned to write this work? Did they love who they were writing about? Did they hate them? What period of time did they write in? What happened during their lives? There are so many questions we should ask ourselves when writing history to make sure we can fully understand what we are reading.
Historiography teaches us to be thorough (however tedious it may feel). We cannot simply pass over one piece of information to reach another. We must embrace the unknown of each new work of history we pick up. We must search beyond the most famous and peer into avenues less traveled. Without a knowledge of historiography we lose the HOW and the WHY and are left with the WHEN, WHERE, WHO and WHAT.
The budding world of digital technologies and resources before us open up a bright future for historians to access information and connect with other historians on an international level. But, in a landscape of historical misnomers and inaccuracies, historiography has taught me to not judge history based on its legend and look deeply into its foundations. Stories that have been passed down can prove to be fiction and written history that has been held as definitive can be as false as a bards tale. To understand history, we must know what to look for, and we must put in the time to prove its value.
Historiography that brings me joy: Lectures that inform. Readings which supplement. Presentations for enrichment. Discussions to ignite thoughts and ideas. Digital resources for the expansion of our knowledge.
From the Eyes of a History Geek 